Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-01-07
A Paper by Altorney-General Tenn
eleton on the Locations and Pat
ents Of Greer County Lands.
A Scholarly Review Of the Texas LAWS
Providing "a the Location Of Vet
ercl Certificates
The Comrtfa of the General Land OF.
fec Mists in His Construction of
4 o Old Treaty.
FL WORTH, TEX, Dec. 26, 1856.

county has ayracted very general atten-
ti5n during the last few months, and as
notice has been given of an application
to be made for special legisl ton IN be-
half of the locations and patents, may
presume on your kindness to furnish THE
GAZETTE a statement of the legal status
Of this interesting and important ques-
ton? | think the people, as well as those
who are to tegislate for the people, will
be edihcd by such authoritative state
ment, ard would very much appreciate
YOUR compliance, and, for such informa-
ton, thank Eou, not only for TEE GA
ZETTE, but jim the name Of the public
also. Verytruly and respectfully yours,
w. L. MALONE,
Managing Editor GAZETTE.
AUSTIN, TEX, Dec. 80, 1856.
". L. Malone, Esq Editor of the Gazette, Fort
Worth, Tex:
DEAR SIR-In an effort to comply with
your request OF the 26th inst. to furnish
you with placement of the legal status
of the locations and patents to land stu
ated in Greer county, | must put you off
with a rather rough and hurried narra-
tive, while at the same time | may travel
little outside of mere statement of the
status of tile locations and patents.
square miles, or an aIea about three times
that of the county of Tarrant. Express
ing its ares in acres, there are within Its
territory II CTS, $50 acres of land. 1t
lies between two prongs # Red river; the
Prairie Dog Town fork, with the Indian
name of stEechiaguahono," on the south,
and the N nth FORK on me north and east,
and the Tooth meridian of longitude west
from Gree nwich GU the west. There is
an old chronic dispute between the United
States and the state of Texas in regard
to the ownership of this territory ante
dating the civil war some years. The be-
ginning e tn" war found US in an effort
to settle This dispute, the point OF which
is, which one of the two prongs
is the real Red river according
to the treaty between the
United States and Mexico or
Spain, made when Texas constituted
a part of the Mexican government
Ii is insisted on the part of the state of
Texas and those most familiar with It's
early history, that the North prong is the
true RED river. THIS gives the territory
to the STATE OF Texas. But it is as siren
uously insisted upon the part Of the
federal government that the South prong
or Prairie D y Town fork is the true Red
river sccordIpg to that treaty, which
gives the I, TritOry of Greer county to the
Indian Territory, or at all events it takes
it away tr-m he state Of Texas. Some
geogrsphers place il within the limits OF
the state of Texas, some make it part of
the In iiau Territory, while others are suf-
flciently accommodating to make it part
of the state of Texas and also part
Of the Indian Territory. When they make
naI of the state OF Texas they put
fGrceX Comfy 10 it, and when they make
"a ma bf the Indian Territory they make
jGreeTECounty constitute part o. that
Teri iory. This county was few months
ago ofsarlzed and term of the district
court bfs been held therein.
TtSSf Jrts to determine the matter of
disftAt boundary had lain dormant, so
far hlkhm informed on the subject, from
sbl Me beginning of the civil war until |
1879 Truring all this time, notWith- |
stan1fnE the fertility of the soil and the |
generb attTaCtlveuess of the country and |
the existence of wild and hungry hunt |
for Sud during a part Of that time, there
appears to have been no attempt to locate |
certificates within the territorial limits Of |
the county, and IS will hereafter appearg |
no 81 Ienpt WAS made to appropriate the |
lard to p iyate use until its appro- !
prlatbn to private use was forbidden. In |
1879, huriug Gov r herts' first admins
tratiCn, he regarded ii important to have |
the ownership Of the territory settled |
- n thought or plan was to appeal to |
1er0sity of the federal government ,
he merits of cur claim and ask 1t to
uish its claim thereto. In order to .
moral force al q strength to this APP
fs,Fta r..al
lnment that the land was not
be spilled to speculative
ises, but instead thereof was to be
for the highest governmental pur
an act was passed on February
"a, entitled Gan act TO set aside the
Z lands embraced within the terri
limits of the county of Greer to edu
bal purposes ara f,r the payment OF
ublic debt" Our public debt, as is
known, wss at that time so great as
matter of serious consideration
people of the safe, and our public
d system, il | may apply that word
was in the crudest possible condi-
The passage of this act
evidently regarded as i'm
mt oy the legislature, for it
the unusual fortune OF passing
houses on the some day on which it
Introduced, with hardly dissenting
A-only three or four Republicans
o scyflSt it--and it was made to go
sdihtey into effect. This act appro-
ed thiireservet land, "one-half there
Or puilic free schools for the educa-
n cjldren ID Texas, without refer
l. rsee or color. and the other hSlf
pEment of said debt" And it
rovked that it shall "Ue surveyed
,Sp Bed of for the purpose OF carry
he provisions of this act in such
les may hereafter be provided by
Let it be said right here, that from
sy 10 this the legislature has
DO act providing the manner of
ard disposition of the land to t
ut the purposes cf the above act, !
{ act has been the only one since I
Eting to the lands in Greer county |
h ensctmenI OF this law in 1879, =
III having been applied by it to /
urp uses, ceased to be and t0 fall |
sny known defnition Of public do !
b, for land once appropriated or APP l
10 any purpose, ceases from that S
tent to be public domain. Lands once o
rted TO private owner is not after
q part of the public domain of the V
z, and when 1t has been applied to any o
purpose, it. just IS emphaticallY /
Is 10 constitute a part CT the publlc II
sin. This was expressly determined II
the supreme court of Texas n rty five o
ago, anGet much earlier period Il
iy fity yfars ago-ft wss so decided Z
he sup} eiAe court of the United II
e. ans these ee1y decisions have y
follo'sed by ~ supreme court of s.
tka/ the U Sted States, and Of II
10 th/ Union in numerous p
2Iid, however, seem to be a.
proposition that no judi Z
D of i: would be neces- ct
&c - or- o-y, oto4a ia